Stock benchmark slips from a five-week high as bullish China bets take a knock following weak reports on producer, consumer prices in China
Market is still on course for a 3 per cent gain for the week, courtesy of a rally in the preceding six days amid speculation on state-fund buying
Hong Kong stocks tumbled to snap a six-day winning run after official reports showed producer and consumer prices in mainland China trailed market expectations, reigniting concerns about the nation’s manufacturing and consumption rebound.
The Hang Seng Index declined 1.77 per cent to 17,915.67 as of 10.53am local time, trimming the weekly gain to about 3 per cent. The Tech Index dropped 2.87 per cent.
Alibaba Group retreated 3.38 per cent to HK$82.95 and rival e-commerce platform operator JD.com slumped 11.38 per cent to HK$104.30. Meituan slipped 3.89 per cent to HK$113.80. Search engine operator Baidu sank 4.94 per cent to HK$125.
Producer prices in mainland China dropped 2.5 per cent in September from a year earlier, capping a 12-month slide, the statistics bureau said on Friday. Economists had predicted a 2.4 per cent decline, versus a 3 per cent deflation in August. A separate report showed consumer prices were flat, versus consensus forecasts for a 0.2 per cent increase.
Other major Asian markets weakened. South Korea’s Kospi retreated 0.7 per cent and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.3 per cent, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 slipped less than 0.1 per cent.
